View full sizeBob Bach / The Oregonian / 2004A 2004 file photo of medical spa doctor Jerrold "Jerry" Darm, who moved his clinic from Lake Oswego to Tigard. Darm is suing a Portland woman, claiming she defamed him in a June blog post and Tweet about his practice and disciplinary record. Legal challenges to online speech continue to evolve and this lawsuit is believed to be Oregon's first Twitter libel case.

TIGARD -- A million dollars, a modern twist on an old legal issue and, potentially, hundreds of millions of Twitter users around the world -- it's all part of Oregon's first possible Twitter libel lawsuit, moving toward a courtroom showdown in Portland later this month.

Portland blogger Tiffany Craig is facing a $1 million lawsuit from Tigard medical spa doctor Jerrold "Jerry" Darm, after she blogged and tweeted about his practice. The suit filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court in July claims Craig defamed Darm on her Twitter account and blog.

In the June postings, Craig called Darm, 62, "ubiquitous" for a television commercial advertising his Tigard-based medical spa, Aesthetic Medicine. Citing a 10-year-old order against the doctor by Oregon's Medical Board, Craig wrote, in part, that the doctor tried to get sex in exchange for treatment.

Libel awards against media defendants, 1980-2009*

Initial awards - 334 cases

Average - $2.8 million

Median - $300,000

Highest (in order) - $222 million, $58 million and $40 million

Final awards after appeals - 143 cases

Average - $679,000

Median - $100,000

Highest - $58 million, $29 million and $24 million

Source: Media Law Resource Center

* This data comes from a 2010 survey of libel cases against media defendants between 1980 through 2009. Because libel cases takes years to go through the court system before a final ruling, most of these cases do not involve online speech. Going forward, however, online speech including blogs, Twitter and other social media would be included in this data.

Darm was reprimanded in 2001 for a violation of the Medical Practices Act, citing"unprofessional or dishonorable conduct." A state board investigation into a complaint found that Darm agreed to treat a patient's spider veins for free after closing time at his clinic in 2000. After treatment, Darm kissed and touched the patient and inferred the contact would be payment, according to a stipulated order that said the conduct was "an inappropriate boundary violation." It does not mention sex.

The stipulated order held Darm to restrictions to continue his practice, including required chaperones to see female adult patients, probationer interviews with the state board, mental health reviews, and courses on doctor-patient boundaries and risk management. The order was terminated in 2009. The Lake Oswego man says he is a former emergency room doctor.

Williams' filing said "the gist" of the blog entry is true and the statements, in context with a provided hyperlink to state medical board records, were opinions based on those facts. Calling Darm a prominent doctor, Williams also contends his disciplinary record is a matter of public interest. Darm's longtime lawyer, Thomas McDermott, however, argues the case is not a matter of public interest because Craig has never been treated by Darm.

In September, Judge Jerome LaBarre ruled with Williams that the case is a matter of public interest and Twitter is a public forum, potentially clearing the way for anti-SLAPP laws to be applied. A second hearing is set for Oct. 20, when Darm's lawyer will have to prove a valid defamation claim.

While similar Twitter libel cases have been filed in the nation, none have actually gone to trial, according to Eric P. Robinson, deputy director of the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Courts and Media at the University of Nevada.

"This is just a new dressing of a recurring situation and it happens to be on Twitter," Robinson said. "Legally, this case is no different than prior defamation cases."

Defamation cases stem back to the 15th century, according to Robinson, who is an attorney and expert on libel cases involving social media. Robinson said he began tracking related lawsuits eight years ago at the beginning of the rise of blogging.

Since then, these kind of suits have become relatively common. The San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation even offers a popular legal guide for bloggers on their website.

"It's important for people to know their rights so they can't be intimidated into not saying what they have a right to say," spokeswoman Rebecca Jeschke said. "And you do have a right, but you also have responsibilities."